The weird ‘crimes’ you did not know you were committing

Rob Knight

The average Brit commits 32 different 'crimes' every year - including not paying for supermarket carrier bags, parking on the payment and pocketing incorrect change.

Other wrongdoings include beeping a car horn for any reason apart from alerting traffic, dropping litter and cycling without lights after dark.

A study found two thirds of the population think many of these laws are completely unnecessary - although seven in 10 admit they do feel guilty if they break them.

A third of respondents revealed they have been caught doing something illegal - with over a third claiming they simply weren't paying attention.

Commissioned to mark the airing of Better Call Saul on BT TV, the study of 2,000 UK adults also found 98 per cent consider themselves to be law abiding.

Among the more serious misdemeanours are cycling through a red light and smoking in a non-smoking area.

A BT TV spokesperson added: "Given Jimmy's fast and loose approach to the law and to celebrate the network premiere of his show 'Better Call Saul' we wanted to look at the old and archaic laws he could cunningly take advantage of.

"The research also shows there's definitely a market need for his services as Brits are not as law-abiding as we might think… he might have just got here in time."

The show is a ‘prequel’ to Breaking Bad, and features the life of lawyer Jimmy McGill before his transformation into Saul Goodman in the Emmy-winning drama.

Eighty-three per cent of Brits said they are sometimes confused by what's illegal and what's not.

Other laws commonly broken include parking on double yellow lines, cycling on the pavement and throwing tree cuttings into their neighbour's garden.

Vacuuming after 1pm on a Sunday is among the more unusual laws on the list and could land you in trouble with environmental health officers for making too much noise.

Sticking a postage stamp to an envelope upside down is treason in the eyes of the law.